Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
01-30-2014, 03:17 PM
#1
Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
This is a thread that will detail the full installation of a single High Powered DVC sub in a very tight space with minimal intrusion into the trunk space. This is not your typical install and will require (if going to be attempted), welding skills and fabrication skills. This installation is actually a strenghtening component to the rear subframe and bumper/tow hook brace.
To begin, I started with a goal of "least intrusive" enclosure. Bass tubes and boxes are way to intrusive for a car this small and take up alot of usable space. The interior has remained entacted and unaltered for a very clean and modest look.
The enclosure began life as a 20 gallon air tank with a 14" diameter. This is the largest diameter that can be used without major rear subframe rework. The sub enclosure fits underneath the spare tire which is only raised 2.5" for this particular installation. The enclosure was meticulously designed to preform with this sub and has the exact reccomended sealed enclosure volume of .8 cubic feet. This sub was chosen for it's excelent reviews on Amazon and youtube. It also has a very small enclosure size requirement as stated above.
In the pictures below you will see the type of fabrication needed and COMMITMENT that you must have as you are altering the car permanently.
After the tank/enclosure volume is calculated fabrication begins by trimming the end off of the air tank and a small section off the other end. I used a 3" cut off wheel which took a long time and effort. A plasma cutter would make a very good and fast cut here if you have one. The opening for the sub was cut out of the end of the short section and measured carefully for trimming and forming. The edge for the sub was hand formed with a large dolley and hammer by slowly rolling the edge over to form the speaker mounting flange. You must cut small slots as seen in the rolled egde to make the edge roll flat. I carefully divided the circumfrence of the hole by the speaker mounting holes and came up with an accurate slot placement. This takes time, don't be in a rush. The final edge can be ground very flat and even when the roll is accomplished.
A hole was marked directly from the tank section in the spare tire well in the exact location (direct center) and cut out with a 3" cut off wheel. The edges of the trunk ARE NOT level, flat or ready in ANY way to accept the sub flange. I used a floor jack and a large metal block for a stationary dolley under the flange and a regular hammer to form the trunk floor to a perfect flat, round feciever flange. This is simple if you take your time and don't get hammer crazy.
It was determined that a 3.5" protrusion underneath the car would be the maximum without becoming the lowest point of contact. I set this enclosure in at 3" below the spare tire well and it looks fantastic. Making the flange to mount it with was difficult with a cut off wheel but turned out excellent here. The flange is 1/8" thick steel, like the tank/sub enclosure and is much thicker than the cars metal. The rear of the enclosure has two long fingers that extend from it that tie in the rear tow loop/bumper brace to the rear subframe suspension forward of it. This effectively makes a very strong connection between the two and a SOLID foundation for BASS production without unwanted resonation (buzzing, rattles). I spent about 20 hours building it after everything was designed correctly and sourced parts for the build. 20 ss bolts and lock nuts are used to mount the enclosure here.
The finished enclosure will be rubberized on the inside for dampening. The round shape will not produce harmfull harmonics on the back side of the sub that boxes generally do. The round sub enclosure promotes clean compression and de-compression of the sub structure. The spare tire here is a 15" rim that will sit nicely on the top of the sub and doubles as a grill! With only a 2.5" raise of the spare, some jumper cables etc., can be stored underneath if properly secured.
Hope you like it, if not; I still do.
To begin, I started with a goal of "least intrusive" enclosure. Bass tubes and boxes are way to intrusive for a car this small and take up alot of usable space. The interior has remained entacted and unaltered for a very clean and modest look.
The enclosure began life as a 20 gallon air tank with a 14" diameter. This is the largest diameter that can be used without major rear subframe rework. The sub enclosure fits underneath the spare tire which is only raised 2.5" for this particular installation. The enclosure was meticulously designed to preform with this sub and has the exact reccomended sealed enclosure volume of .8 cubic feet. This sub was chosen for it's excelent reviews on Amazon and youtube. It also has a very small enclosure size requirement as stated above.
In the pictures below you will see the type of fabrication needed and COMMITMENT that you must have as you are altering the car permanently.
After the tank/enclosure volume is calculated fabrication begins by trimming the end off of the air tank and a small section off the other end. I used a 3" cut off wheel which took a long time and effort. A plasma cutter would make a very good and fast cut here if you have one. The opening for the sub was cut out of the end of the short section and measured carefully for trimming and forming. The edge for the sub was hand formed with a large dolley and hammer by slowly rolling the edge over to form the speaker mounting flange. You must cut small slots as seen in the rolled egde to make the edge roll flat. I carefully divided the circumfrence of the hole by the speaker mounting holes and came up with an accurate slot placement. This takes time, don't be in a rush. The final edge can be ground very flat and even when the roll is accomplished.
A hole was marked directly from the tank section in the spare tire well in the exact location (direct center) and cut out with a 3" cut off wheel. The edges of the trunk ARE NOT level, flat or ready in ANY way to accept the sub flange. I used a floor jack and a large metal block for a stationary dolley under the flange and a regular hammer to form the trunk floor to a perfect flat, round feciever flange. This is simple if you take your time and don't get hammer crazy.
It was determined that a 3.5" protrusion underneath the car would be the maximum without becoming the lowest point of contact. I set this enclosure in at 3" below the spare tire well and it looks fantastic. Making the flange to mount it with was difficult with a cut off wheel but turned out excellent here. The flange is 1/8" thick steel, like the tank/sub enclosure and is much thicker than the cars metal. The rear of the enclosure has two long fingers that extend from it that tie in the rear tow loop/bumper brace to the rear subframe suspension forward of it. This effectively makes a very strong connection between the two and a SOLID foundation for BASS production without unwanted resonation (buzzing, rattles). I spent about 20 hours building it after everything was designed correctly and sourced parts for the build. 20 ss bolts and lock nuts are used to mount the enclosure here.
The finished enclosure will be rubberized on the inside for dampening. The round shape will not produce harmfull harmonics on the back side of the sub that boxes generally do. The round sub enclosure promotes clean compression and de-compression of the sub structure. The spare tire here is a 15" rim that will sit nicely on the top of the sub and doubles as a grill! With only a 2.5" raise of the spare, some jumper cables etc., can be stored underneath if properly secured.
Hope you like it, if not; I still do.
Last edited by Tyler Dirden; 01-30-2014 at 05:32 PM.
01-31-2014, 03:56 PM
#4
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
The inspiration was what I believed would be an improvement to the drop in sub enclosure that some cars use in the spare tire compartment.
I imagine that it will sound unbelievable, because the bass will transmit through the car literally.
I will have my hands full for a while I bet finding every rattle and buzz. I want a solid hit, not messy ****. What some will tolerate with rattles is crazy to me. I just want clean bass, not rap bass.
I imagine that it will sound unbelievable, because the bass will transmit through the car literally.
I will have my hands full for a while I bet finding every rattle and buzz. I want a solid hit, not messy ****. What some will tolerate with rattles is crazy to me. I just want clean bass, not rap bass.
02-02-2014, 11:55 AM
#5
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Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
It looks nice, but how will it sound?
That's essentially an SPL driver stuffed into a small sealed enclosure.
Your output is gonna fall flat on it's face under 50hz
That's essentially an SPL driver stuffed into a small sealed enclosure.
Your output is gonna fall flat on it's face under 50hz
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02-08-2014, 05:47 PM
#12
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
Thank you guys
I have to get the correct body sealer that won't crack or deteriorate; something like windshield gasket roll from 3M to mount it in permanent. Also, I have to rubberize it inside and provide two terminals for the sub wires to pass through.
Will update when amp comes in about sound quality. Should be right on though, the volume of the enclosure exactly matches the speakers sealed sub volume requirement of .8 cubic feet.
I have to get the correct body sealer that won't crack or deteriorate; something like windshield gasket roll from 3M to mount it in permanent. Also, I have to rubberize it inside and provide two terminals for the sub wires to pass through.
Will update when amp comes in about sound quality. Should be right on though, the volume of the enclosure exactly matches the speakers sealed sub volume requirement of .8 cubic feet.
02-08-2014, 06:10 PM
#14
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
It took me about 20hrs to get to this point. It will probably take me 2-4 more hours to prep the trunk and sub enclosure to seal it and install the sub and amp. Alot of time but I don't have a plasma cutter which would have shaved a bunch off.
04-10-2014, 05:27 PM
#15
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
I'm back with the follow up info for this installation.
This has turned out well. I rubberized the interior of the bass ball and installed a sealed two wire port for the sub connections. I wired the sub in parallel to get 1 Ohm since this amp will drive a .5 Ohm stable load to extract it's full potential.
I quickly primered and one coated it white until I detail out the trunk with other air ride compressors and hardware too. It was sealed with 3M windshield adhesive for a weather tight fit. Don't underestimate how messy this stuff can be!
The amp fits like it was made for this car! The DelSol trunk liner panels have a perfect bulge that when cut out will sit the amp in an awesome perch. Very short screws (3/4") were chosen as not to protrude too far into the rear window cavity. The wiring was very easy and I chose the largest conductors possible. I may choose to install a cap later but didn't yet because I ordered a Lanzar 12 farad cap that when it arrived was a cheap piece of ______ that I refused to install and sent it back for a refund.
I am going to get an active crossover since all these amp low level wires are split from the two the radio offers and looks cheesy to me. The bass boost **** fit like it was made for the DelSol right into the cigarette lighter hole (which is unused) and now holds the bass **** for quick adjustments from song to song.
OK, to the review:
You may be thinking that just because I went through all this trouble I would give a biased review; wrong. I will tell you the truth. Without this sub for the last 6 months, I really thought my forward system was loud (mid/highs) and was craving bottom which it never delivered. Even though the doors have massive 6.5" mid woofers by Lanzar which took a very long time to get into the door without interfering with the window; they have no rear sealed enclosure to bring out the bass they could make. They have like 5 lbs magnets on each one. Again very loud but not much bass.
When I got this sub up and going for the first time on low settings (nothing on the levels are maxed) I don't abuse amps, this changed the whole dynamic. It is scary how much bass a single 12" sub can produce in the proper sized enclosure. It will bumb a kick drum on rock music sooo sweet and clean. It will pound a boom boom from bass favorites that is clean and undistorted. It hits the entire car out well and without rattles from handles and stuff in doors that buzz. The sub is solidly mounted to the floorpan and rear SUBframe (haha) of the DelSol and produces great bass in the seat of your pants. Subs mounted in the trunck don't have that fuzzy cabin bass like some love because it gets dampened a bit but ALL the solid hits come through without a hitch and resonance bass too.
I am going to have to install more mid and highs up front to get the ballance of really loud and clear I want. I really like to immerse myself in a big song and dissapear into the noise for a moment, like soo loud you can't be distracted by anything in life until the volume drops. A cocoon of sound, concert level and clean. I will give more updates with the next amp and forward equipment. This has been a very rewarding install and worth every moment to me. The few people that have seen it so far are blown away at the spare tire location. At first when the bass was low, the spare tire rested well on the edge of the sub shell. But when I bumped it up the tire bounced! I mean bounced and moved around. I had to raise it off the sub shell a half inch or so with a pool noodle to keep it put. This full size spare weighs 22 lbs and it was bouncing around. It stays put now and is dampened by the foam support underneath. It also makes a very clean grill to protect the sub that looks great.
The big *** hole in the dash is for the future air ride accesories and active crossover unit. I will fab a nice pocket out for the regulators and gauges etc and make a cover that will keep it sorta low key like the SRS bag that was there once.
This has turned out well. I rubberized the interior of the bass ball and installed a sealed two wire port for the sub connections. I wired the sub in parallel to get 1 Ohm since this amp will drive a .5 Ohm stable load to extract it's full potential.
I quickly primered and one coated it white until I detail out the trunk with other air ride compressors and hardware too. It was sealed with 3M windshield adhesive for a weather tight fit. Don't underestimate how messy this stuff can be!
The amp fits like it was made for this car! The DelSol trunk liner panels have a perfect bulge that when cut out will sit the amp in an awesome perch. Very short screws (3/4") were chosen as not to protrude too far into the rear window cavity. The wiring was very easy and I chose the largest conductors possible. I may choose to install a cap later but didn't yet because I ordered a Lanzar 12 farad cap that when it arrived was a cheap piece of ______ that I refused to install and sent it back for a refund.
I am going to get an active crossover since all these amp low level wires are split from the two the radio offers and looks cheesy to me. The bass boost **** fit like it was made for the DelSol right into the cigarette lighter hole (which is unused) and now holds the bass **** for quick adjustments from song to song.
OK, to the review:
You may be thinking that just because I went through all this trouble I would give a biased review; wrong. I will tell you the truth. Without this sub for the last 6 months, I really thought my forward system was loud (mid/highs) and was craving bottom which it never delivered. Even though the doors have massive 6.5" mid woofers by Lanzar which took a very long time to get into the door without interfering with the window; they have no rear sealed enclosure to bring out the bass they could make. They have like 5 lbs magnets on each one. Again very loud but not much bass.
When I got this sub up and going for the first time on low settings (nothing on the levels are maxed) I don't abuse amps, this changed the whole dynamic. It is scary how much bass a single 12" sub can produce in the proper sized enclosure. It will bumb a kick drum on rock music sooo sweet and clean. It will pound a boom boom from bass favorites that is clean and undistorted. It hits the entire car out well and without rattles from handles and stuff in doors that buzz. The sub is solidly mounted to the floorpan and rear SUBframe (haha) of the DelSol and produces great bass in the seat of your pants. Subs mounted in the trunck don't have that fuzzy cabin bass like some love because it gets dampened a bit but ALL the solid hits come through without a hitch and resonance bass too.
I am going to have to install more mid and highs up front to get the ballance of really loud and clear I want. I really like to immerse myself in a big song and dissapear into the noise for a moment, like soo loud you can't be distracted by anything in life until the volume drops. A cocoon of sound, concert level and clean. I will give more updates with the next amp and forward equipment. This has been a very rewarding install and worth every moment to me. The few people that have seen it so far are blown away at the spare tire location. At first when the bass was low, the spare tire rested well on the edge of the sub shell. But when I bumped it up the tire bounced! I mean bounced and moved around. I had to raise it off the sub shell a half inch or so with a pool noodle to keep it put. This full size spare weighs 22 lbs and it was bouncing around. It stays put now and is dampened by the foam support underneath. It also makes a very clean grill to protect the sub that looks great.
The big *** hole in the dash is for the future air ride accesories and active crossover unit. I will fab a nice pocket out for the regulators and gauges etc and make a cover that will keep it sorta low key like the SRS bag that was there once.
04-10-2014, 06:47 PM
#17
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
Like I said above, hits hard and solid throughout the car. Really clean bass, not noise but sound.
If you havn't noticed, I am an audiphile and like very clean sound. I never drive my amps to their max and oversize them to the drivers.
Low impedance is powerful and clean.
I read years back that the ideal enclosure material for sound was concrete because of the lack of resonance it contributed. The wall thickness of the bass shell is very strong because it use to be an air tank. It also is rounded in every way inside which treats the reversion waves from the speaker very gently and doesn't break them up into groups of off harmonics. It is very efficient at compression and decompression which translates into clean bass.
Boxes with corners have all kinds of reflections and off harmonics going on inside them. Some guys like the bass so loud anyway that clean is not a concern, just messy vibration that shakes the car. This was an experiment that turned out well and is not intrusive to the trunk space by any measure.
If you havn't noticed, I am an audiphile and like very clean sound. I never drive my amps to their max and oversize them to the drivers.
Low impedance is powerful and clean.
I read years back that the ideal enclosure material for sound was concrete because of the lack of resonance it contributed. The wall thickness of the bass shell is very strong because it use to be an air tank. It also is rounded in every way inside which treats the reversion waves from the speaker very gently and doesn't break them up into groups of off harmonics. It is very efficient at compression and decompression which translates into clean bass.
Boxes with corners have all kinds of reflections and off harmonics going on inside them. Some guys like the bass so loud anyway that clean is not a concern, just messy vibration that shakes the car. This was an experiment that turned out well and is not intrusive to the trunk space by any measure.
04-12-2014, 07:53 AM
#18
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
Just got the nerve to turn up the bass a bunch for an old Public Enemy jam and I got an adreneline rush for an instant.
These smaller cars really don't need a big enclosure to get the point across.
Even the traffic going by hears it as I can see their expressions with my wide segmented rear view. I turn it down in town to be polite.
These smaller cars really don't need a big enclosure to get the point across.
Even the traffic going by hears it as I can see their expressions with my wide segmented rear view. I turn it down in town to be polite.
04-17-2014, 03:27 PM
#21
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Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
A question, is that .8cuft net or gross?
A FYI, speakers sound the best when mounted in a wooden cabinet, even a wood baffle, [mounting ring] would have decoupled the sub from the metal of the cabinet.
Still have to say good use of space, and keeping the spare is "a good thing". 94
A FYI, speakers sound the best when mounted in a wooden cabinet, even a wood baffle, [mounting ring] would have decoupled the sub from the metal of the cabinet.
Still have to say good use of space, and keeping the spare is "a good thing". 94
04-18-2014, 05:58 PM
#22
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
The manufacturer stated on their speakers design sheet that a sealed enclosure of .8cu' was suggested. That is actually very small, something like 5. ish gallons which I made exactly to the mounting flange.
Sure, it's a permanent hole for the sub, but I fabricate ALL THE TIME and trust my ideas. I do alot of research before hand and commited to the hole only after the enclosure was fully fabbed and I was happy.
It simply hits well. I am very satisfied and would reccomend it to others with good fabrication skills and good equipment. These Lanzar 1232D subs are more than they appear and well suited for a single high power install like this. Man, if someone put a REALLY big SLT woofer and a 3000+ watt amp in, this would do some dammage.
Sure, it's a permanent hole for the sub, but I fabricate ALL THE TIME and trust my ideas. I do alot of research before hand and commited to the hole only after the enclosure was fully fabbed and I was happy.
It simply hits well. I am very satisfied and would reccomend it to others with good fabrication skills and good equipment. These Lanzar 1232D subs are more than they appear and well suited for a single high power install like this. Man, if someone put a REALLY big SLT woofer and a 3000+ watt amp in, this would do some dammage.
05-19-2014, 12:37 PM
#24
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Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
i have long fantasized about enclosures like this. good job! Never doubt an idea until you have tried it yourself.
05-20-2014, 06:14 PM
#25
Re: Del Sol "BASS ball" Not your typical sub install.
Glad to offer a different perspective.
Now that the weather is really getting nice here, I take the top off which let's alot of sound out. I have to put it up higher than I had it before and it just keeps delivering strong bass.
Strong rock kick drums are brutally crisp and I love them the most.
Not at all disapointed with this.
Now that the weather is really getting nice here, I take the top off which let's alot of sound out. I have to put it up higher than I had it before and it just keeps delivering strong bass.
Strong rock kick drums are brutally crisp and I love them the most.
Not at all disapointed with this.
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